Here’s five easy ways to improve the quality of your video footage when you’re on the road. Follow these pointers and the watchability of your travel videos will skyrocket.

The text is packed with links to video tutorials on each specific shooting-related topic, so bookmark and study at your leisure.

Tip #1: Know your camera.

You wouldn’t bake a cake without a recipe. And you wouldn’t jump in the sea without learning how to swim. Why, then, would you begin a filmmaking project without a basic knowledge of videography?

It happens all the time. If you don’t know how to focus, how to expose, what ‘white balance‘ means, how to get audio levels right and what the differences between aperture, shutter speed, gain and filter density are, your footage is going to suffer — and/or you’re going to miss what you need to capture while you’re figuring out which button to press.

The solution starts with reading the manual, but it doesn’t end there by a long shot. It means practicing for weeks before shooting anything that matters. The goal is to be able to set up and operate the camera in any situation without thinking. Creativity can’t express itself until you reach that stage. Get the basics down way before you begin your trip.

Tip #2: Keep the camera handy.

It’s no use being at one with your camera unless you can grab it and start shooting the minute the perfect opportunity rears its head. On the road, these opportunities will come out of the blue. So the more accessible your camera, the better. I kept mine at the top of my bar-bag, and with practice could transition from pedalling to pressing the record button in less than 10 seconds.

Ultra-keen filmmakers may like to keep a tiny second camera handy for this purpose, keeping the ‘proper’ camera for shooting more in-depth scenes. The picture quality of some of these little cameras nowadays is frankly astonishing.

Tip #3: Put yourself in filmmaker ‘mode’.

It’s easy to see stopping and setting up for a shoot as a chore — indeed, one of the most oft-asked questions I get at screenings of Janapar is how I kept up the motivation to spend so much time shooting.

Far better, then, to see it as an opportunity instead of a burden. If, when a shooting opportunity arises, you dedicate yourself to the art of filmmaking, relishing the opportunity for creative expression and to produce your own best work — well then you’ll certainly enjoy the process more, and you’ll certainly produce better footage as a result.

But do keep your filmmaker hat separate from your traveller hat. I’ve found it’s best to wear the latter a lot more. Don’t forget why you’re on the road, nor what the core of your story is, lest your trip turn into a TV production.

Tip #4: Know how to shoot.

Excuses for poorly-shot footage are diminishing, given the amount of free videography advice on the web. Even though much of it is aimed at indie filmmakers, it can all be applied just as well to travel videographers (who after all are indie filmmakers too).

You’ll also need to be familiar with the various indispensable accessories for capturing quality footage — lenses, tripods, camera mounts, microphones, filters, video lights, lens hoods and more. (Just because they’re called ‘accessories’ doesn’t mean they’re optional, by the way, it just means they’re not part of the camera itself.)

Tip #5: Know what to shoot.

This is perhaps the point that requires the most complicated blend of experience and preparation. Because, thanks to cheap, high-capacity memory cards, it is wonderfully easy to capture hours and hours of interesting-looking stuff. But every second of footage exponentially increases the time you’ll need to develop, edit and produce a finished film.

The trick is to understand that films are built from lots of sub-stories, linked by cuts or short transitional sequences. Before you hit record, ask yourself: is what I’m about to shoot part of a usable, individual story that has relevance to the narrative of my film? Or is it just ‘interesting stuff’ which is unlikely to really be of use to me in the edit?

If the answer is the latter, leave the camera packed away. It’s OK to experience your trip without a lens getting in the way. In fact, most of the time, it’s better that way. You’ll probably find that the quality goes up as the quantity goes down. So keep your shooting focused.

The best way to keep focused, of course, is to develop the idea for your film before you begin your trip — as I did for this winter ride to the Arctic, where I shot just 25 minutes of footage for a very specific short film I’d already visualised. As a result, editing and post took just a few hours (as opposed to the ten weeks of twelve-hour days it took to edit the 300 hours of footage that went into Janapar.)

* * *

The overall theme here is that practice makes (almost) perfect — and that filmmaking is a far more complex art than it might appear. There’s a lot to learn, but there’s also endless scope for creative storytelling. Just be sure to lay the foundations well in advance.

Thanks a lot Tom. Just downloaded the movie. I might get carried away by the story but also want to identity techniques you explain.
I would love to make a movie of my trip, at least something I would enjoy watching. I agree it’s about the story. I just can’t watch most travellers videos and images because I find them boring. But as soon as the lead character goes on explaining his feeling, struggles and joys. Then it can easily become an addictive watch/read.
I was writing a lot so far in a form of an online diary so that I have the material after to write a short story. I have figured out the main plot. But now I’m interested in making a movie. I don’t know anything but I will have read all your articles by the end of the day. Planning to hit the trail again tomorrow.
PS: just absolutely love the winter video. That is perfect. If I was to achieve 50% of that I would be the happiest.
Any recommendation how to find an editor mentor? Someone who can look at my footage as I upload them and give me feedback ?

Hi! I’m Tom.

I’m a self-unemployed creative explorer, author and filmmaker, specialising in Armenia & the Caucasus. Here’s where I share my personal journey as a world traveller, storyteller and advocate for the outdoors. More »

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